Wednesday, October 1, 2014

Have You Unpacked Your Standards? What's Next?

My suitcase is sitting in a corner of my bedroom. I got back from my trip to Baltimore 11 days ago, but my suitcase is only partially unpacked. I took out the things I really needed, but haven't had the time or energy to unpack the rest. This weekend I am going to finally work on unpacking everything. I also brought back new things from my trip- souvenirs and books, and ideas! I need to think about what I will do with them too.

Since the spring of 2010, we have been working on unpacking our New Learning Standards. It has taken us 3 years to completely empty out that suitcase. First, we unpacked the standards that fit into our existing spaces because they were very similar to what we already had. We also found that there were some new things to consider as we continued to looked through the standards we unpacked next. This year, as we fully implement the new standards, we are able to focus on what these new standards really look like, sound like, write like in our classrooms and what instructional shifts need to be happening in our teaching to help our students build the knowledge and skills they need to be have choices in their lives beyond high school.

There are 6 Instructional Shifts, 3 in ELA/Literacy and 3 in Math. These Instructional Shifts are NOT standards. There are a lot of videos, resources and sample activities available to help teachers understand these shifts. It isn't so much the need to understand them as it is the need to reflect on our own teaching practice to decide what these shifts will look in action in our classrooms that is key. As a teacher, the challenge is to teach our new standards through the lens of the instructional shifts. If we do this, the learning environments that we create in our classrooms will be richer because of it.

I put together a set of Guiding Questions and Resources to help you with your reflection on Instructional Shifts and where they fit into your instructional practice as a teacher.

How do I design lessons that will allow students to understand key concepts in math not just learn tricks or shortcuts?

What opportunities can I give my students to do activities that help them practice important functions like single digit multiplication so that they increase the speed, accuracy and efficiency of their calculations?

How can I create authentic tasks that will allow my students to apply their math in problem solving situations.

How can I help students learn that math can be used in a variety of content areas to make meaning and build knowledge of content?

About Me

I am currently the Director of Curriculum and Instruction for the Bay Village City Schools. This position allows me to be a teacher of teachers. I also serve as a bridge between the Dept of Education, the School Board and the teachers. I am the Chairman of the Ohio Education Leader Cadre, a member of the Ohio Senate Advisory Committee on Testing, the State Lead for Ohio Core Advocates, and a Teacher Champion with the Collaborative for Teacher Success. My past experience includes working as a Technology Integration Specialist, a 7-12 Science and Language Arts Instructor and a Varsity Swim Coach. My professional interests include formative assessment, differentiating instruction and developing interdisciplinary units. I enjoy creating and presenting professional development sessions.
When I am not teaching, I design jewelry. I also work with the Cleveland Museum of Natural History's archaeology field program during the summer. I enjoy spending time with my family on the beaches of Lake Erie and South Carolina.
Follow me on twitter @edtechgirl